Discussion on political reform in Jordan "has failed"

A meeting between the Islamic Action Front Party and the Jordanian Prime Minister-designate, Abdullah Al-Nesor, has been deemed to have failed. The discussion was intended to overcome the differences between Islamists and the government regarding Jordan’s elections.

The Secretary General of the IAF, Hamza Mansour, said, “The [Prime Minister-designate] has no green light to discuss our reformist demands, including amendments to the election law.” He pointed out that Mr. Al-Nesor did not provide any offer that could change the equation, leaving the status quo in place. “The atmosphere is friendly but we cannot see anything new which would encourage us to reconsider our position.”

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Nevertheless, said Mr. Mansour, “The Prime Minister-designate expressed positive feelings toward the Islamic movement as an essential component in the fabric of the nation and a stabilising factor.”

The IAF has presented a formal memorandum outlining its demands, which stresses that “there is no way to get out of the crisis except a national consensus on a programme of reform”.

According to IAF Secretary Dr. Abdullah Farajallah, the party delegation was told by Al-Nesor that there is no other option but to hold elections and that there is no constitutional solution to amend the law now. “Instead,” added Farajallah, “he offered to extend the registration period and pledged to keep in touch with the Islamic Action Front.”